The greatest numbers on Earth

Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey elephants made their annual stop at Lexington Market for the "Lunch With the Elephants."

Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey elephants made their annual stop at Lexington Market for the "Lunch With the Elephants." (Baltimore Sun)

Chris Kaltenbach, The Baltimore Sun

105 years of shows.

90,000 pounds of elephants.

And a bunch of shoes, size 28EEEEE. For the clowns, of course.

When it comes to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus, an entertainment extravaganza that routinely, without being challenged, bills itself as "The Greatest Show on Earth," the numbers alone tell quite a story.

There is, for example, 118. That's the number of performers involved in putting on "Fully Charged," the circus show that will be playing at Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena through April 1. They include 25-year-old ringmaster Brian Crawford Scott, among the youngest in the circus' century-plus history; 2 juggling Fusco Brothers, Emiliano and Maximiliano, whose act includes juggling flaming clubs in the dark while standing back-to-back; and 1 Sean Davis, a clown with a degree (really!) in criminal justice.

There's also 56. That's the number of animals in the show — including the above-mentioned 45 tons of elephants, plus 18 Bengal tigers and 4 Norwegian fjord horses.

But most pertinent, perhaps, is the number 17. That's how many performances are left before Ringling Bros. packs its tent, parades onto the circus train and heads out of Baltimore for the next stop on its 78-city tour.

Still not convinced? Here are just a few more numbers that the Ringling Bros.' "Fully Charged" calls its own:

340: Total cast and crew responsible for putting on this edition of "The Greatest Show on Earth."

270: Number of those who live and travel on the circus train.

130: Number of feet traveled by Brian Miser, the Human Fuse, after being launched from a "super-sized human crossbow."

35: Feet above the ground, the height at which aerialists Dima and Nadja perform their "divine ballet."

149: Years of acrobatic experience amassed by the nine-member Negrey Troupe, from Russia and Ukraine.